Liveblogging the 1st Perry-Hutchison-Medina Debate

We'll have real time updates, photos and analysis from the Denton debate between GOP gubernatorial candidates Governor Rick Perry, U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison and Debra Medina. Check back and reload often. Elise is reporting from the University of North-Texas campus, Ross will be providing additional analysis from Austin.

The Texas Debates are being produced by KERA in partnership with CBS 11 (KTVT-TV) and TXA 21 (KTXA-TV), Fort Worth Star-Telegram, KUVN Univisión 23, Texas Association of Broadcasters (TAB), Texas State Network, and the Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas.

The media room is bumpin'. Photographers are working to get all their hookups to the feed ready, but it appears we're powerless. The building doesn't have power for an hour, so all the reporters are going to have to run on battery for awhile... hope everyone's fully charged.

Not everyone out here in TV land is getting the same show tonight. The debate's going all over the place, but some stations — notably the home base at KERA in Dallas-Fort Worth — will get an hour of spin room and analysis after the debate. Other cities get just the hour-long debate.

First question. Perry drew first. Name one federal program you like. Perry picks the military. "There are three things our government should do well, deliver our mail, stand a military and protect our borders," he said. "One outta three ain't bad. (This is a line he commonly uses on the stump.)

Just before the debate, Team Perry launched a new television ad, titled "Bailout" and aimed at Hutchison's vote for TARP funds in the last month's of the Bush Administration. ...

Here's the script, along with my bet that Perry hits her on some of this during the next hour:

TEXT ON SCREEN: Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison...Senator Hutchison: “I could not give a blank check for 700 billion dollars to anyone. I wouldn’t have given it to Ronald Reagan.”...TEXT ON SCREEN: September 30, 2008...Narrator: “Just one day later, Senator Hutchison bailed on Texans …”...TEXT ON SCREEN: October 1, 2008...Narrator: “… and voted for the 700 billion dollar Wall Street Bailout.”...TEXT ON SCREEN: Senator Hutchison voted FOR the $700 billion Wall Street Bailout...Senate voice: “Mr. Hatch, Aye. Mrs. Hutchison? Mrs. Hutchison, Aye.”...TEXT ON SCREEN: BAILOUT BOONDOGGLE New York Post, November 14, 2008...Narrator: “No surprise. For over 17 years, she’s voted for billions in earmarks, spending and more debt.”....TEXT ON SCREEN: Senator Hutchison has voted for BILLIONS in earmarks, spending and more debt....Narrator: “Senator Hutchison, voting with Washington since 1993.”...TEXT ON SCREEN: Senator Hutchison Voting WITH Washington since 1993...

Things get a little testy as the topic turns to unemployment. Perry uses this to pivot into his main campaign message - that this is the best state to be living in to find a job. Pressed, Perry gets a little defensive - "It wears me out that we have two people on stage that want to tear Texas down.:

Medina and KBH both point out that Texas has indeed lost jobs in the private sector. So KBH gets a little backup for the first time tonight from Debra Medina. The moderators are kind of losing control of the parameters here, but it's a good back and forth.

A view from my seat in the debate filing room. We all laughed when Perry made a little joke about KBH citing The Dallas Morning News. (I'm sitting next to the guys from the News, who took it in stride.)(Photo by Elise Hu)

Ever hear three candidates talk at once? They're geared up to argue, and did, on the subject of the economy, unemployment and such. Perry wants to use numbers through 2008, before the state economy started to turn. Medina and Hutchison want more recent numbers. And then they all talked at once...

Some of the questions for each candidate are just what the opposing campaigns want asked (not that there's anything wrong with that): Hutchison gets an abortion, Roe v. Wade question; Medina's asked about guns; Perry gets a question about eminent domain and the Trans Texas Corridor. And now, they get to ask each other some stuff...

Hutchison's getting into murky waters with the issue of abortion. Perry, in his opportunity to ask her a question, targets her vote to continue Roe v. Wade and also the original support of the stimulus package.

Roe v. Wade's a big deal in a GOP primary, and so Perry loads it into his question (on something else entirely, the bailout of GM) to Hutchison. He'd like to be in the 100 percent pro-life position and keep her in the something-less-than-100 percent category. Keep watching...

Perry changed parties in 1989, having been a Democratic member of the Texas House. He ran for agriculture commissioner as a Republican in 1990 and won, in an upset, and has held office since. Medina asks about it anyway, pointing to his support (in 1988) for then-presidential candidate Al Gore. That's fighting talk in a GOP primary.

We should mention the debate staging. Medina is sandwiched right between the GOP heavyweights. Medina is positioned Kay on screen left, and Rick on screen right. Medina, in her opportunity to address Perry with a question, says that Texans deserve a break from the squabbling but also tells him he "paints a rosy picture that doesn't exist."

A smart move by KBH as she gets to ask Medina a question. She uses a question about the high property taxes in Texas to get Medina to criticize Perry on the issue. Medina, predictably, says all property taxes should be eradicated.

Some economics: To Hutchison's question about how she'd fund government without property taxes, Medina says she'd go with a broad-based sales tax instead. She says it would boost the economy and jobs...

Hutchison does a little ju-jitsu, agreeing with Medina, "and frankly, the governor" that Washington has overstepped its bounds and encroached on state's rights. She says she's been fighting that in Washington.

Forty minutes in. KBH's camp responds to the pressure on abortion with a few points. (Team Kay has been furioualy blasting emails and their "fact checks", my email inbox is blowing up.) A snippet from them on the abortion issue:

Hutchison Has A Lifetime Average Of 94 Percent For Voting With The National Right To Life Committee. (National Right To Life Committee, "NRLC Vote Scorecards," capwiz.com, Accessed 11/13/09

* Hutchison Has Voted 6 Times To Ban Partial-Birth Abortion; At Least 16 Times To Prohibit Federal Funding Of Abortions; At Least 7 Times To Prohibit Federal Funding For Organizations That Promote Abortion As A Method Of Birth Control Overseas; And 3 Times To Make Transporting Minor Across State Line In Order To Circumvent Parental Notification Law A Federal Crime.

Medina comes back on sales taxes, adding that business margins tax should be whacked along with the property tax (she'd do away with both). She'd keep sales tax exemptions on medicine and such to protect the poor from paying higher proportions of their incomes. But she doesn't get to what rate she'd charge -- the state gets 6-1/4 percent of sales now, and what she's suggesting would add at least a nickel to that.

This debate has gone by very fast - already we're at closing statements and the press is getting their shots and positions ready for the press conference that's going to be going on here. Perry and Hutchison are both not going to be participating in the presser. "We said before, we wouldn't come if we won," said Communications Director Jenn Baker.

A very lively debate, folks. Perry was typically confident and wry, Hutchison was full-energy and well-prepared, Medina more than held-her-own. Too bad these public officials won't be answering questions. But we do get Medina in the post-game presser. At least there's Debra.

Some notes: The candidates ran over the moderator and the panelists and took control of the debate. Medina, the outsider here, put on a credible show (though you're free to blast away or support her policy positions, according to your preference). Perry and Hutchison looked like they've done this a lot, which might or might not be a good thing. The governor didn't make any mistakes, really, and neither did the senator. They didn't produce anything that will have Texas talking tomorrow, either. Neither of them lost the debate, but that's not the same as winning it. Those two, at least, will meet again: Belo Corp. is holding a GOP debate on January 29. Hutchison and Perry are invited; Medina is not.